Like real guardian angels, angel investors help finance and support entrepreneurs’ innovative ideas. Behind the term “angel investor” are people from a variety of backgrounds, including former CEOs, executives and entrepreneurs. They all share a deep passion for entrepreneurship, a strong drive to stimulate innovation, and an appetite for risk.

A financial investment focused on startups

Angel investors finance the creation and development of a startup either independently (direct investment) or through an intermediary holding company that pools funds (indirect investment). The amount they invest can reach up to several million euros. This calculated risk can bring rewards in the form of capital gain.

Angel investors remain minority shareholders in the companies they support. The additional capital can come from investment companies, other angel investors or crowdfunding, which is also becoming a popular form of financing.

Support, expertise and experience sharing

Angel investors typically provide a financial investment in the early phases of a startup’s activity. But they can also offer the following support:

expertise (technical, market, management, etc.)

experienced advice on starting a business

a new vision, with more perspective on projects

a network (leads, contacts, more credibility, etc.)

All these assets can make a crucial difference when launching a startup!